v., -nealed, -neal·ing, -neals. v.tr.
- To subject (glass or metal) to a process of heating and slow cooling in order to toughen and reduce brittleness.
- To strengthen or harden.
To become strengthened or hardened: "the time she needed for opinion to anneal around her policy" (Alexander M. Haig, Jr.).
[Middle English anelen, from Old English onǣlan, to set fire to : on, on; see on + ǣlan, to kindle.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
